Snakenapped
by Philosopher Fictionist
Summary: WIP. RW,OFC. The team gets an interesting case, and Wolfe meets an interesting girl. Too bad she's involved in the case and he can't do anything about it... for a while. RR
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

A young woman dressed in army green whistled to herself as she walked through the room, stopping at every pane of glass to peek in on her charges, smiling lightly to herself. As she neared the end of the row, her cheerful tune stopped, her head turning slightly over her shoulder. She closed her eyes, listening harder, another shuffling sound echoing around the silent room, prompting her eyes to pop open.

"Chris?" she called quietly, turning to back toward the door. "Is that you?" Her breath came in short gasps, a sweat breaking out on her forehead as the room remained silent. "Jimmy?" Her back rammed into something hard and warm as she took another step back. She started trembling, knowing she was a good yard from the back door. A scream leapt from her throat as a hand clamped on her shoulder, throwing her backwards. She stumbled, tripping over an empty cage and barely catching herself before she smacked her head on the corner of an aquarium cabinet, finding herself face to face with a very angry Gaboon viper, only a thin sheet of glass separating them. She blinked quickly, picking herself up, feeling blood drip from a gash in her shin. As she righted herself, the black clad figure stepped toward her. The last thing she saw was a chunk of wood swinging toward her head.

-

Ryan Wolfe swore to himself as he steered the Hummer toward the reptile exhibit at the Miami Zoo, shaking his head as the lights atop the responding police cars appeared from around a corner. The Hummer pulled to a stop next to a matching one, Lieutenant Horatio Caine already out of the car and talking to a zoo security guard, hands on his hips and sunglasses perched on his nose. Wolfe hopped out of his vehicle and strode over to Horatio, his metal collection kit in hand.

"What do we got?" he asked quietly, stopping next to Horatio.

"I'm not sure yet," Horatio said in his usual cryptic manner. Wolfe's eyebrow rose. "Either theft or kidnapping."

"Kidnapping at the reptile exhibit?" Wolfe asked. "The storage shed?"

"Not a storage shed, Wolfe," Horatio said with a tiny smile. "The snake barn."

"You gotta be kidding me."

"Well, whoever it is knows what they're doing. We're missing fifteen rare and expensive specimens," Horatio said, nodding toward the building where police officers were stringing up crime scene tape. "None of which are poisonous, and all of which would catch a nice price on the black market."

"Snakenapping," Wolfe said. Horatio only nodded. "Any witnesses?"

"Maybe. Why don't you go start processing the barn," Horatio suggested. Wolfe nodded, clearing his throat and adjusting his grip on his kit before heading into the building.

"Whoa," Wolfe whispered, clicking on his flashlight. Broken glass littered the floor, a small pool of blood just inside the door. He blinked quickly, stepping around the blood to inspect the shattered aquariums. The building was all a single room, cabinet style aquariums lined up along all four walls with several rows down the middle, only about five feet tall. A metal cage was turned on its side near the door, looking to be slightly crushed. His eyes narrowed as he crouched down, turning his flashlight to a smear of blood on one of the bars of the cage. "Hmm." He swabbed it, along with the blood on the floor, and turned back to the glass.

"Anything interesting?" Wolfe glanced up at the door, where Delko now stood, lowering his kit to the ground.

"Looks like there was a struggle," Wolfe answered after tucking his blood samples away. "Broken glass, blood on this cage and the floor." Delko nodded.

"Glass looks like it's from the aquariums," he commented. "Breaking it's faster than unlocking and propping the doors open." Wolfe nodded, reaching for a wooden stake with a smear of blood. "Especially when you've got a warm body on the floor." Wolfe's head snapped up.

"Dead?"

"Knocked out," Delko answered with a shrug. "Cold. Out when the head veterinarian came in this morning."

"Who?"

"Assistant vet. Bailey Devlin. Closed up and never went home," Delko said. "Do we know if there's a chart of what's supposed to go where?"

"I haven't found one," Wolfe said. "Maybe our victim has it."

"The victim?" Delko asked, turning to Wolfe with a smirk.

"In his head," Wolfe clarified. "If he's the assistant vet and closes up every night, there's a chance he knows this place from memory. But why'd the thief leave all these others behind?"

"Looks like most of the ones left are poisonous," Delko answered without looking up from dusting the floor. "And I have a shoeprint."

"Nice." They both returned to their work, photographing and collecting anything that could possibly be evidence.

"How's it going guys?" Horatio asked, stepping into the darkened building.

"Judging from the shoeprints I lifted, there was just one assailant," Delko said, picking up shards of glass with blood smeared on them. "Suspect may have cut himself on this glass." Horatio nodded. Wolfe looked up, his brows furling.

"Think it was someone here? An employee maybe? It'd almost have to be someone familiar with snakes," he said.

"I've got Calleigh interviewing all employees with access to this building," Horatio said. "If one of them was in here, he'll have a piece of this building on him and Calleigh will find it."

"Any idea when we can talk to the victim?"

"Bailey Devlin," Horatio said. "Taken to University Hospital for treatment. Unconscious, head injury, not a clue, but Yelena will call the minute we can make a visit." Wolfe nodded. "Wolfe, I want you to do that."

"Yes, sir."

"Horatio." All three looked up as Calleigh approached, pen and paper in hand. "I talked to all of the employees working in and around the reptile exhibit, and all of them check out. Supervisor is sending over the timesheets."

"Good work."

"One more thing," she added. "I asked what the species would be worth if someone were to try to sell them, and we're looking at an excess of a hundred thousand dollars."

"For a collection of worms?" Wolfe quipped. Calleigh sent him a deadpan look.

"They have two eyes, Ryan. That alone makes them a bit more advanced than worms," she said flatly. He and Delko snickered, Horatio shaking his head.

"What about surveillance?" Horatio asked.

"Outside of the building only," Calleigh answered. "And depending on which direction our intruder chose, the tapes may not show anything, but they're on the way to the lab right now."

"Good. Get back there and help out with those."

"You got it," she said, smiling brightly up at Horatio. For the umpteenth time since he started at CSI, Wolfe wondered if there was something going on there. He shook his head, tucking his evidence bags into his kit.

"I'm gonna get started on this stuff," he said, snapping his gloves off and dropping them into a bag. Delko looked up, watching him label the envelope and drop it into his kit, closing up and standing. Wolfe paused, tilting his head and narrowing his eyes. Delko followed his gaze, standing with a small smile.

"Looks like that's the way in," Delko said, nodding toward an open window just above one of the aquarium cabinets. All the others were closed.

"They lock from the inside," Wolfe pointed out.

"Which means the assailant has regular access or someone helped him out," Delko said. "Maybe he left something behind on his way in." Delko moved toward the window, glancing around for a stepladder or something. "I'll call you if I find anything," he threw over his shoulder. Wolfe nodded, glancing at Horatio.

"Meet me at the hospital when our victim wakes up?" Wolfe asked. Horatio nodded once, and Wolfe walked back to his Hummer.

-

Wolfe sat at the table, leaning over the printouts of the DNA analysis on the cage, floor, and piece of wood. Delko hadn't gotten back from the zoo yet, and he had the glass shards with the blood. Wolfe sighed, rubbing a hand over his face. His phone spun a circle on the table as it rang, and he snatched it up.

"Wolfe, CSI."

"Horatio. Listen, our victim just woke up. Head over there and take over. Yelena's meeting you there. I'm going to talk to the supervisor again."

"Yes, sir." Wolfe let out a sigh, tucking the DNA reports into the case file he'd started and set them aside, shrugging off his lab coat and heading for the door. The hospital was only fifteen minutes away, and Yelena met him in the lobby, both heading for the elevator. "Did you find anything out?"

"Waiting for you," Yelena answered. Wolfe smiled, gesturing for her to lead the way as the elevator dinged and the doors slid open. He stopped in the doorway of the hospital room, jaw hanging slack. "Bailey Devlin?" Yelena asked. The woman in the bed stirred, groaning a little as she shifted under the sheets. A deep gash in her forehead had been stitched shut, a dark purple bruise already surfacing. Her lip was split, brown hair tousled with dried blood, and her hands were bruised and cut as well. Yelena glanced at Wolfe, and he cleared his throat, taking the chair next to the bed.

"Miss Devlin, I'm Ryan Wolfe with the crime lab." She turned her head toward the voice, struggling to open her eyes. The right side of her face, battered with the wooden stake, was so swollen she could only open that eye to a tiny slit, but her left eye opened to reveal a bright green iris flecked with yellow. "How are you feeling?"

"Like someone dropped me into a jar of molasses," she drawled, glancing up at the IV bags. He followed her gaze, smiling as he read the name of a heavy duty sedative. "Doctor says I have a concussion. Gotta rest."

"I just have a few questions," he said, an apologetic tone to his voice. She nodded, shifting onto her side to face him.

"Who's that?" She asked, lifting a hand toward Yelena.

"Detective Yelena Salas," Yelena said with a smile. "We're glad you're okay."

"Better than dead, but hardly okay," Bailey answered with a snicker, which quickly turned into a heavy sigh. "The nurse already took my clothes to the crime lab," she said. "Wish she'd left my damn socks." Wolfe cracked a smile. "Hope she didn't take pictures while I was out," she added.

"Why's that?" Yelena asked.

"Probably drooled," Bailey answered with a tiny smile and a shrug. "Not pretty." She sighed. "I was checking on the kids like I always do," she started.

"The kids?" Wolfe asked.

"I'm a herpetologist working on a vet degree to actually make money working at the zoo," Bailey answered. "All the cold blooded, scaled, crawly creatures are my babies. I specialize in constrictors. Anyway, I heard a shuffling sound behind one of the middle rows and thought it was Chris."

"Chris…"

"Another veterinary intern. He works the same shift, but I usually check on the animals not on display." Wolfe nodded, jotting that down. "Chris Parker. No one answered, and I got a really bad feeling. So I started backing toward the door and ran into someone." She paused to swallow with a wince, tucking a chunk of hair behind her ear. "I'm pretty sure I let out a yelp or something, and then he threw me around. Tripped over an empty rodent cage and cracked my shin open. And then all I remember is hearing a whooshing sound, like when you swing a bat or something." Wolfe nodded.

"So this guy you ran into," he said.

"Um, probably about six foot. I didn't see his face, but he seemed pretty solid when I ran into him. Felt like a warm wall. And I smelled cologne."

"Cologne?" Yelena asked.

"Yeah." Bailey closed her eyes, her forehead crinkling. "Adidas for men, I think. I had a boyfriend that wore it. Damn amegdulla."

"Connects smell to memory," Wolfe said with a grin. "Do you know what was taken?"

"Taken?" she asked, her eyes popping open. "Wait, they took the snakes?"

"Some of them," Wolfe said. She sighed, shaking her head. "All nonpoisonous."

"Well, at least the assholes were halfway intelligent."

"We need to know which ones were taken," Wolfe said. "Do you know where each animal was kept off the top of your head? I have a sketch of the broken aquariums with missing specimens." He held the sketches out to her, and she stared at them, flipping from one page to the next slowly.

"I'd have to see the aquariums," she said. "They broke the glass? Poor babies."

"What do you mean?"

"Those snakes never had any contact with anyone other than Dr. Rhodes, Chris, and me," she said. "The most excitement they ever get besides food is some punk kid coming through the exhibit and knocking on the glass to fuzz them up. The glass breaking would seriously freak them out." Wolfe glanced at Yelena. "They're used to their routines," Bailey continued. "They stress out really easily."

"So you're worried about… snakes," Wolfe said slowly.

"Yes, I am," she sighed. Her eyes closed again. "Can I get out of here and go check it out? Find out who's missing?"

"You really should rest," Wolfe said, flipping his notepad shut. "I'll take you over there once you feel up to it."

"I feel up to it right now," she insisted, opening her eyes and staring up at him again. "I'm terrified it's too late to find them already."

"What do you mean?" Yelena asked.

"Black market. Zoos and sanctuaries have become a prime target for the reptile trade recently. Ever since U.S. Fish and Wildlife started cracking down on the importation of wild species for sale as pets." Bailey shook her head, probing the gash in her lip with her tongue. "Even private breeders." Her forehead crinkled. "Can someone stop by my house and check on mine?"

"You keep snakes at your house?" Wolfe asked. She nodded.

"I just put an ad in the paper. I've got a female incubating a clutch of eight." Wolfe looked to Yelena, who was already out in the hallway on the phone.

"Do you have someone that can pick up some clothes for you and bring them to the hospital?" Wolfe asked. "The clothes you were wearing are at the lab, right?"

"Yeah, I can call my cousin," she said. "Don't worry about it."

"Do you know anything about this black market operation?" Wolfe asked.

"Yeah, I took a seminar at the New York Zoo a few months ago," she said with a small nod. "They think it's a big operation, actually. Work regionally from a warehouse. When they have a collection big enough to fill a moving truck, they ship them off."

"Where?"

"I don't know," she said. "But it's a risky business. Most of the animals die before they reach the distribution center. In a warehouse that's not temperature controlled, most of the time they're not fed, don't have enough water or clean water, and then they travel for days in a truck that's not temperature controlled. Most reptiles have a specific temperature range they're comfortable in. Too much time outside that range, their metabolism slows and then they eventually die," she said quietly. "Not to mention injuries, infections, and pests. Mites and ticks, mostly."

"Not very cost effective," Wolfe said.

"Doesn't cost them much to steal. And not taking care of them saves that much more money," she explained a little sadly.

"Well, that really helps. Thank you," Wolfe said, adding a small smile.

"If there's anything I can do besides map out the barn for you, let me know," she said. "I'm sure you can figure out how to get in touch with me. All your little toys and stuff," she said with a smile. "I want to help however I can, I mean it."

"And I'll remember that," he said, nodding once. "Get some rest." She nodded, letting her eyes close.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

"Hey Wolfe," Delko called, poking his head out into the hallway as Wolfe passed. "What'd you do with the DNA analysis report on the blood you collected?"

"It's in the vertical file in the DNA lab," Wolfe said.

"Male or female?"

"Female. Probably Devlin's," Wolfe answered.

"Blood from the glass is male. No match in CODIS." Wolfe's eyebrows shot up.

"Our suspect." Delko nodded. "Get anything off the window?"

"Some hairs. Sent them to trace. What'd you get from the victim?"

"Bailey Devlin. Female, actually." Delko glanced up quickly. "And yes, she's hot. Beat up pretty bad, but definitely hot. Anyway, she thinks it's a black market thing. Steal animals and sell them to pet stores. She said Fish and Wildlife started cracking down on imports so they're turning to the zoos and private breeders."

"Did she figure out which ones were taken?" Delko asked.

"No, I'm going to have to take her over to the crime scene. The sketches didn't help." Delko nodded. "Doctor said she'd probably get to go home tomorrow morning, so we'll see."

"How bad was it?"

"Nasty cut on her head, some bumps and bruises, mild concussion, nothing too bad, I guess," Wolfe answered with a sigh. "She'll be fine."

-

Bailey groaned as she crawled out of her cousin's car, standing at the sidewalk as he drove away. She heaved a sigh, shifting the backpack on her shoulder, and glanced up at her front porch, where a uniformed officer sat. After a quick smile, she walked toward the stairs, nodding at the officer.

"Everything okay?" she asked.

"You got ID?"

"Yeah, sure," she said, ruffling through her bag for her wallet. "I guess the cracked head isn't really specific enough, huh?" A poor attempt at humor, judging from the look the officer gave her. Her smile was sheepish as she handed over her driver's licence, the officer barely glancing at it before giving it back and waving her in. "Thanks," she said, unlocking the door and heading inside. She dropped her backpack just inside the door, kicking her shoes off and heading into the kitchen, her stomach already talking to the refrigerator.

After popping a TV dinner in the microwave, she wandered into the den, crouching in front of the aquarium holding her albino red tailed boa, smiling softly at the snake curled protectively around her clutch of offspring, eyeing Bailey suspiciously.

"Don't worry, sweet pea," she cooed. "I trust you'll be a good mommy." The microwave beeped, and she stood up, shuffling back into the kitchen. "Never gets done the first time," she sighed, shaking her head and shoving the tray back in, nuking it for another couple of minutes. She filled a freezer bag with ice water and wrapped it in a towel, leaning against the counter to wolf down her dinner, finally settling on the couch in the foyer, leaning her head back against the armrest and balancing the bag of ice water on her face. The swelling had gone down quite a bit, but it still hurt like crazy. Images of the snakes she cared for at the zoo flashed through her mind as she drifted off, and the ring of the doorbell jerked her back to reality, sitting upright suddenly and sending the ice bag flying across the room. She sighed, snatching up the towel and bag on the way to the door.

"Hi," she said, opening the door wider. Wolfe glanced around the room as he took two steps inside.

"Detective Salas called and said you'd been released from the hospital," he said. She nodded.

"Come on in," she said. "Can I get you anything?" She started toward the kitchen, but he shook his head, holding out a hand.

"That's not necessary," he said quietly. Her eyebrow rose, but she shrugged, plopping back onto the couch and dropping her head into her hands against the bag of ice water. "I take it your, um, snakes are okay?"

"Yeah, thanks," she said. "They're in the den behind you if you want to meet them. "Delilah's a bit pissy right now. Protecting her eggs and all." He glanced into the room, but didn't venture in. "I assume you want to find out who's missing from the barn, right?"

"It's still being processed right now, actually," Wolfe said after a beat. She lifted her head to look at him. "I just had a few more questions."

"Shoot."

"Did you know a window was open above the aquariums?"

"Do you want something to drink?" she asked as she stood, the towel and bag of ice water dangling from her hand. "I've got sweet tea in there." He blinked quickly.

"Sure." She nodded, managing a tight smile as she headed into the kitchen. He followed, glancing around as he took a seat at the table.

"We open the windows up during the summer when it's warm. Gets pretty stinky in there sometimes."

"They stay open all night?" he asked, taking the glass she held out to him.

"No," she said, turning to fill her own glass and sit across from him. "Chris closes them when it starts getting dark and cooling off."

"Right," he said, pausing to take a sip. "They latch from the inside, right?" She nodded, drawing in the condensation on her glass. He watched her for a moment, brows furrowed. "You okay?"

"Nervous," she said with a small shrug. "I feel like I'm a suspect here." Wolfe's jaw tightened, and she rubbed her forehead gingerly, running her finger lightly over her stitches. His hand shot out and pulled her hand away.

"Don't touch," he said quietly. "If it means anything, I don't think you did it," he said after a beat, still clutching her wrist. A tiny smile touched her lips, but it was fleeting. "But I do have to consider you a suspect until I can definitively rule you out." She nodded, pulling her arm from his grasp.

"You said you have a few questions," she said quietly. He nodded, turning his glass in a slow circle.

"I found your blood on a cage." She nodded.

"I tripped over it when he threw me around," she said tightly.

"It was the only cage in there, and I was just wondering what it was for," he said.

"Food." His eyebrow rose. "The snakes get fed on Fridays, at night before I leave. I take the cage over to where we keep the feeder rodents, fill it up, and carry it back. It's easier to just leave it in there. Spend so much time on that side of the property it's a pain to take it back after I feed them. Saves me a trip." Wolfe nodded. She took a quick drink of tea, licking her lips. "Did you find out what he whacked me with?"

"A wooden stake," Wolfe said quietly. She blinked, shaking her head.

"They're planting saplings in the new rainforest exhibit," she said after a pause. "And the butterfly exhibit, come to think of it. They're not open yet." Wolfe produced his notepad, glancing around for a pen. His collection kit was still next to the front door, and he glanced over his shoulder at it, starting to stand. "There's a mug of pens on the counter by the fridge," she said with a tiny nod in that direction. He took two steps to retrieve one and two steps back, the legs of his chair groaning against the tile floor as he plopped back down.

"What's going into the rainforest exhibit?" he asked.

"Everything that lives in a rainforest, all in separate enclosures." He glanced up at her. "It's going to be built like you're in a huge room, with aquarium cabinet type things all around." He nodded. "Separate the ones that need to be separated, but it's supposed to give the feel of actually being in a rainforest with all the species. I'm not involved in the project, so that's as much as I know. It's not far along enough for me to start worrying about which of my babies are going."

"You're really into these things, aren't you?" he asked with a small laugh.

"I'm allergic to cats and dogs, hate birds – they're stinky and noisy – and I hate rodents. That leaves reptiles. Lizards are too quirky and ornery, and snakes are just so fascinating," she said with a shrug. "They're amazing to watch. Graceful and mysterious." His eyes met and held hers for a moment before she looked away quickly. "I don't know. I've just always liked snakes."

"So you specialize in boas, right?"

"Constrictors," she corrected. He blinked. "Anything that constricts its prey. Boa constrictors and pythons."

"And none of those are poisonous."

"Not a one," she said with a smile. "But that doesn't mean they aren't dangerous." "Less dangerous, though, right?"

"Not really." He shook his head. "Consider," she said, pausing to lick her lips. "I have both the world's longest and the world's heaviest snakes under my specialty. The reticulated python is the largest – gets over 30 feet, solid muscle. He wants to give me a hug. My lungs end up not having room to expand, my circulation is cut off, and my nerves can't send or receive signals to and from my brain. I die, it swallows me." Wolfe swallowed, his eyes widening. "Or I run into a green anaconda, also a constrictor. The heaviest – four to five hundred pounds. It decides to hug me, drags me into the river and _then _starts to constrict. Not only do I lose circulation and nervous system communication, I drown if I can expand my lungs enough to try to take a breath."

"Nice."

"Venomous snakes are just lazy," she added. "One bite kills their prey eventually, so that's all they bother with. Bite it, let it go, and track it down later." He chuckled. "But you're not here to talk about my love of snakes."

"No, I'm not," he said, the smile falling.

"When do you think I'll be able to see the barn again?" she asked quietly.

"I don't know," he said. "It depends on when we finish processing it. But we won't release it until we get you in there and find out what was taken."

"I don't understand what you want to wait for," she said. "I mean, I know you have to do your job and everything, but I want to find those snakes and get them back home. I don't know how you plan to look for them without knowing which ones are missing in the first place."

"Miss Devlin—"

"Bailey." He glanced up at her quickly.

"Bailey, humans take priority. Our main concern is finding out what happened to you and then we'll track down the snakes."

"I'm fine," she said, trying to sound firm but he caught the tremor in her voice. "I have fifteen endangered or protected animals out there in the hands of someone who doesn't know what they're doing and doesn't give a shit. The longer you leave them as a secondary priority, the greater number of them I'll have to say goodbye to and replace and the longer the survivors will have to suffer. I've got a bottle of painkillers I can take, and I know I have food and water. They don't. They might not be human, but that doesn't mean it's okay to let them suffer. Find them, find who did this, and you meet your first priority." She stood, taking his glass from the table and dumping the ice into the sink before putting it in the dishwasher. He reread his notes, not knowing what else to say. When he looked up, she was leaning against the counter, head dipped toward the sink. With a heavy sigh, he stood and walked up next to her.

"Bailey?" She didn't respond, so he reached out, settling a hand between her shoulder blades. "I need to take you back to the lab, okay?"

"Prints and DNA?" she asked weakly. He swallowed.

"Yeah." She sniffed, turning away from him as she stood upright, wiping her cheeks with the back of a hand.

"Lemme get my shoes on," she said with a small nod, avoiding his eyes as she shuffled back into the foyer and slowly worked her way up the stairs. _Well duh, Wolfe,_ he thought. _With one eye swollen shut, she probably doesn't have much depth perception, if any._ He sighed, running a hand through his hair. She appeared a moment later, flip-flops in place, and carefully descended the stairs, hanging onto both handrails. "Do I need to drive or can you have someone bring me home when you're finished with me?"

"I'll bring you home," he said. "I don't think we want you driving right now."

"Painkiller's a bitch," she said with a small laugh.

"You feel okay?" She glanced up at him quickly.

"Yeah, fine. Let's just get this over with," she said. He pulled the door open for her, kit in hand, and waited for her to lock her door before heading out to the Hummer, pulling open the passenger door before arranging his kit in the back seat and climbing in next to her.

-

"So what do we think, Wolfe?" Wolfe started, glancing up at Horatio, both behind the one-way mirror looking on as Detective Salas printed Bailey, the lab already profiling the DNA sample she gave. Wolfe only shook his head, jaw clenched.

"I don't think she had anything to do with it, H," he answered after a moment. "She's more worried about those snakes than taking care of herself."

"She's a scientist, Wolfe," Horatio said gently. "And she was the victim here."

"Yeah, but she hasn't been ruled out yet," Wolfe said. "She had access, and her getting attacked could have been part of it, or her partner could have turned on her."

"But what does your gut tell you?" Wolfe looked up at Horatio for a moment, then closed his eyes.

"Yeah, but hunches are fallible."

"So is science sometimes." Wolfe sighed, opening his eyes and looking back at Bailey, now sitting alone at the table, hands in her lap, staring down at a half full glass of water.

"I think my judgment's clouded, honestly," he said quietly. Horatio smiled.

"Do you want me to assign you to another case?"

"No," Wolfe answered, pausing. "But I think you should." Horatio gave a little laugh and shook his head.

"Sometimes we just have to suffer and wait until the case is over, Wolfe," he said. "And I need you to stay on this one." Wolfe nodded. "Sometimes gut feelings lead to the bad guy faster than the evidence."

"You think so?"

"I do," Horatio said with a nod. "And I think you're right."

"About what?"

"She's a beautiful and intelligent woman, Wolfe," Horatio said. "And she's a snake charmer. I did some checking, actually," Wolfe's head snapped over to look at Horatio, who held out a sheet of paper. Wolfe took it from him, and Horatio gave him a smile before leaving the room. Wolfe glanced back at Bailey before looking at the paper, a small smile touching his lips.

-

Bailey looked up as the door opened, managing a small smile before going back to watching the floaties swirl around in her water. Wolfe sat down across from her, unclipping his holster from his belt and setting his gun on the table, folding his hands and leaning on his elbows. She glanced at the gun quickly, then turned her eyes back to her water.

"My Lieutenant did some checking up on you," he said quietly. She lifted her eyes to his, but they held no expression of guilt or feeling like she'd been caught. "You said you attended that seminar up at the New York Zoo." She nodded. "You didn't say you presented."

"It wasn't pertinent," she said with a shrug. "Was it?"

"No," he admitted, tilting his head to the side. "Reptiles as therapy?"

"It's soothing," she said. "Snakes give great neck massages. Having one crawl around on you is really relaxing. Stimulates the nerves like massage therapy but gives contact with another creature. Granted, most people think they're creepy, but those who are open-minded seem to have benefited from it."

"And you volunteer to give awareness presentations at schools," he said. She nodded.

"We have several poisonous species here in Florida," she said. "I think it's important to teach kids to respect them and stay away so they don't get hurt."

"And you're on call with Animal Control?"

"A lot of them don't know how to handle snakes safely, for them and the snakes."

"And you've called the ASPCA several times to report neglected animals at pet stores." She nodded. He leaned back in his chair, rubbing his thumb back and forth against the side of the table. "I'm going to be honest with you here," he said after a moment.

"Someone on the other side of the mirror?" she asked quietly. He glanced over his shoulder at it and shook his head. "So be honest with me."

"I don't have anything to rule you out, but I don't think you were involved." She blinked, but gave no indication she was either surprised or relieved. "We're going to find you all over that building." Her eyes lowered back to the glass. "You work there, we expect that. The most that will happen is the evidence turning out to swing either way, in which case we'd favor you." She nodded, swallowing thickly. "But unless I find evidence to suggest otherwise, you're not a suspect."

"Is that wise?"

"Someone told me to go with my gut feeling, and that's what I'm going to do," he said.

"Look, I can understand being considered a suspect. I'd consider me one too if I were you. But I don't have anything to hide, so don't intentionally exclude me because you have a feeling. I know I didn't have anything to do with this, and I trust your evidence will tell you that," she said after a long pause. "Don't risk missing something to make me feel better about my role in the investigation. That's a risk that's not worth taking." His eyebrow rose. "For you and for those snakes out there. I'd rather have to defend myself against a piece of evidence that might lead to finding them than to have you ignore it for my sake."

"I'm just saying we're not concentrating on you as a suspect now," he said. "I'm not suggesting we'll let some evidence slide because we don't think you were in on it. If we find it, we'll consider it. I just want you to know you don't have to worry about making sure you don't look guilty."

"I'm not worried about making sure I don't look guilty," she said, her eyes meeting his. "I'm not guilty. Why are we arguing about this?" A tiny smile curled his lips, and he shook his head.

"You said you felt like a suspect earlier. I'm sorry about that," he said. She sighed, shaking her head.

"Don't be. Just doing your job."

"That reminds me," he said, flipping through his case folder. "I got the results back from trace on some hairs we found near that window I told you about." She nodded. "Is there someone that has access to both the reptile barn and the big cat exhibit?"

"Dr. Rhodes and Chris," she said after a moment. "And the Zoo director, of course. I take it the hairs were from a big cat?"

"Lynx."

"We don't have a lynx," she said, her brows furling. "Not since a month ago. We sent ours up to the Atlanta zoo for breeding." Wolfe's brow furrowed. "We only have one."

"And you don't give tours of the barn." She shook her head no. "That might be something." He stood, clipping his holster back on. He stopped at the door, turning back to her. "I'll be right back and take you home."

"I can call a cab," she said with a shrug.

"No, it's fine," he said with a dismissive wave. "I'll be right back." He nearly flew down the hallway to where he'd left Delko. "Hey." Delko looked up from scraping some mud off the point of the wooden stake. "They don't have a lynx. They sent the one they had up to Atlanta to breed a month ago."

"They just have one?"

"Yeah. So we're looking at someone from another zoo or a sanctuary or something," Wolfe said, dropping the file folder onto the table next to Delko.

"She's here right now?"

"I'm getting ready to take her home," Wolfe said, motioning toward the hallway. Delko's eyebrow rose. "Dude, half her face is swollen, _and_ she's on prescription painkillers. She couldn't drive down here, and I was already there to ask her about the window and the cage."

"What was the cage for, by the way?" Delko asked, returning to his mud analysis.

"Feeding. They take it over to where they keep the rodents and stuff and take them back to the snake barn in the cage. She leaves it in there to save a trip."

"And the window?"

"Open them during the day to get some fresh air and close them when it starts cooling off at night." Delko nodded. "There's more in that folder you might want to check out. I won't be gone long."

"Sure you won't," Delko said with a grin. "You could have a cruiser drop her off, you know."

"Yeah, I know," Wolfe said.

"But."

"But I feel bad." Delko looked up at him in confusion. "I made her nervous when I was talking to her before."

"Wolfe, everyone gets nervous when cops question them. It's normal."

"Yeah, but usually I mean to," Wolfe said. "This time that was the last thing I wanted to do."

"Still happens." Wolfe shrugged. "Does Horatio know you've got a thing for her?"

"I don't have a thing for her," Wolfe groaned. Delko only laughed, and Wolfe rolled his eyes. "Told me sometimes we have to suffer and wait until the case is over."

"Was he smiling?"

"Yeah."

"Yeah, he knows," Delko chuckled.

"I'm leaving now," Wolfe said flatly, standing there for a moment to watch Delko laugh before turning on his heel and returning to the interrogation room where Bailey sat. She'd drained the glass of water and was inspecting her stitches in the mirror.

"You know, I don't care if someone's back there," she said upon hearing the door click before opening. "I look like I got hit by a train."

"It's not that bad," Wolfe said, smiling. She sighed, shaking her head. "You ready?"

"Yeah." He held the door open for her, pulling his keys from his pocket as he followed her out.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

"You know, I took a forensic science class in college," she said, breaking the silence in the car as he drove back to her house.

"Yeah?" She nodded, still staring out her window. "I noticed you were a little up on things." She gave a short laugh.

"God, it feels like ages ago."

"What'd you study?"

"I got my bachelor's in biology. Masters in herpetology, and now I'm going to veterinary school part-time," she said, glancing at him quickly. "What about you?"

"Bachelor's in chemistry, masters in genetics."

"And then you became a CSI," she said.

"Well, I was a patrol officer until I finished my masters," he said with a small shrug. She turned to look at him, and he glanced at her from the corner of his eye.

"Really."

"Yeah. I'm actually pretty new to the whole CSI thing."

"You seem like you know what you're doing." She smiled at the unabashed laugh he gave her, turning back to her window. "You like it better than patrol?"

"Without a doubt," Wolfe said, pulling into her driveway. "There's no closure working patrol. At CSI, you see the cases through, give the family answers."

"Hopefully," she added. He glanced over at her quickly.

"Yeah." She smiled, reaching for the door handle.

"Thanks for the ride."

"Uh, look…" he said quickly, her hand pausing on the handle. She turned to him, attempting to raise her eyebrow but not having much luck. "I know it's a little weird for me to ask this, but, um…" He trailed off at her smile. "Never mind," he muttered, shaking his head.

"I'm sure you'll see me again, CSI Wolfe," she said. "I still have to give you a tour of the barn." A ghost of a smile played on his lips. "But do you want to come in again?" He gripped the steering wheel, rocking back and forth in his seat just a tiny bit.

"I shouldn't," he said after a long moment of consideration. "Open investigation."

"Conflict of interest." He nodded. "Well, you know how to get in touch with me," she said, opening the door. "And you have my permission to do that should you feel the inclination." He smiled. "But in the mean time, you can always think of more questions." She didn't wait for an answer, shutting the door and walking up the drive to her porch, glancing over her shoulder at him as she stuck the key in the door, glancing at the cop still sitting outside before disappearing into her home. He sat there for a moment, shaking his head before backing out and heading back to the lab.

-

"Looks like Ryan's taken a fancy to someone," Calleigh quipped, joining Horatio in the fingerprint lab. Horatio only smiled, staring up at the screen showing AFIS flipping through its database to find a match to prints pulled from the scene. "Do we have anything?"

"Not yet," Horatio said. "And he knows what he's doing." Calleigh looked up at him, trying to hide a smile. "We have one print left."

"All the others are a match to Bailey Devlin?"

"And Chris Grimes."

"And Dr. Mary Rhodes," Calleigh sighed.

"Bingo," Horatio said. "This one isn't a match to any of them."

"This could take hours, Horatio," she said. "Delko's still waiting on the results from the mud on the wooden stake to find out where inside the zoo it was placed, and we can't take Devlin back to the crime scene until tomorrow." Horatio glanced at her. "Why don't we call it a night and sleep on it?"

"Hungry?"

"You know me," she said with a smile. Horatio mirrored it, and both turned toward the door. "So I'm going to guess you noticed as well and talked to him about it."

"He'll be fine."

"I know." She smiled her thanks as he opened the front door for her, following her through. "But I also know you, Horatio. You'd rather risk hurting someone's feelings to prevent them from doing something they might regret instead of hurting someone's feelings when you have to hand out the discipline."

"I think it was more along the lines of easing his mind about possibly hurting her feelings," Horatio said with a quiet laugh, pulling the passenger door open for Calleigh. "And he was worried about his hunch that she wasn't involved."

"Let me guess," she said, climbing into Horatio's Hummer. "He wasn't sure whether or not he could rule her out as a suspect until he had evidence she wasn't the snakenapper or a partner."

"Exactly." She sighed. "Calleigh, it'll take him some time to adjust from patrol to CSI." She nodded, and he shut the door, leaning against the door, the window already down. "He hasn't learned yet that his gut could tell him more than unexamined evidence."

"He's trained to ignore first impressions," she said.

"Something like that," Horatio said with a nod. "So let's give him time and help him make that transition." She pursed her lips, watching him walk around to the driver's side and get in. They looked at each other for a moment before chuckling and driving off.

-

Bailey sighed, delicately running her fingers over the stitches holding her forehead shut. It amazed her how well the anti-inflammatory was working on the swelling and redness around the lacerations and abrasions marking her face.

"I still look like ground beef," she sighed, turning away from the mirror and running a wide-tooth comb through her wet hair, shaking it out before returning to her bedroom to get dressed. She pulled on a pair of loose jeans and her favorite olive tank top, dropping a pair of bright yellow tennis shoes by the door. After winding her hair into a knot secured with a chopstick, she extracted her baby boy, a hatchling ball python, only two weeks out of his shell. He wrapped tightly around her neck, tucking his nose behind her ear. He was the only male of the litter, and she planned on keeping him. Just as she poured hot water over a tea bag in her coffee thermos, the doorbell rang. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly, forgetting about the baby clinging to her neck as she pulled the door open. Wolfe's eyes widened, and he inadvertently took a step back.

"Morning," she said slowly.

"Uh, you have a snake on you," he said, pointing at her neck. Her hand went to her neck, and she smiled.

"Oh, he's just a baby, chill out," she sighed, stepping away from the doorframe to let him in. Wolfe took a few tentative steps past her, and she set her thermos on the table next to her couch. "Think you can handle holding him for a couple seconds while I put my shoes on?" He glanced down at her bare feet and she wiggled her toes for emphasis.

"I guess?" he said after a beat.

"You're fine," she laughed, unwinding the snake from her neck and placing him in Wolfe's hands. "Just don't make any big movements and he won't jump."

"So um, does he have a name?"

"I'm actually not entirely sure he's a boy yet," she said, unfolding a pair of socks and plopping on the couch. "Couple more weeks and I should be able to find out, but I'm almost positive. I don't want to pick out a name until I'm sure."

"So you're keeping him."

"He's too sweet to sell," she said, winking up at Wolfe before bending over to tie her shoes.

"Yeah."

"Look," she said, standing and taking the snake from him. Wolfe's eyebrow rose as she held a bent finger under the snake's chin, planting a quick kiss on the tip of its nose. The little guy didn't move an inch until she did, and then he moved closer to her face. "He's a sweetheart," she said, cocking her head to the side before walking back into the den and arranging the snake back in its tiny aquarium. "Perfect for a breeder."

"The more docile the breeder," Wolfe said with a small smile.

"The more docile the offspring," she finished. "He's a fifth generation domestic bred albino ball python, in case you wondered."

"Relatively domestic, right?"

"Well, yeah," she said, stooping to pick up her backpack. "Snakes will always be wild animals. But if you breed them correctly, you get a snake that not only behaves itself around humans but might actually enjoy the company of humans."

"Meaning they're less likely to bite."

"Ryan, ball pythons hardly ever strike at anything too big for them to swallow," she said, locking her door. "They call them ball pythons because they roll into a ball to protect their heads if they feel threatened."

"Really."

"Yes," she said, climbing through the door he held open for her. "And they're also called royal pythons because their markings sometimes resemble crowns."

"One species with two common names," Ryan commented.

"It's more common than you think," she replied. "Green anaconda and water boa are names for the same species as well."

"I didn't know anacondas were boas." She turned to look at him, wearing a triumphant smile.

"Learn something new every day, huh?" He smiled, backing out of the driveway and taking off toward the zoo.

"So how'd you find that house?" he asked after a period of unsettled silence.

"You mean how do I pay for a house in Miami on ten dollars an hour?" she returned, staring out the window.

"That's not what I meant," he said quickly.

"It's okay," she said with a small smile. "My family comes from old Kentucky horse money. Daddy bought the house when he retired and left it to me, completely paid off. All I have to pay is utilities and taxes. Company pays for internet and phone service since I'm on call and constantly doing research. And my car, which is still at the zoo by the way," he glanced over at her quickly, "is the first car I ever owned. And no, my parents didn't buy it for me," she said. "Well, they fronted me the money, but I paid them back with summer jobs and stuff. I worked my own way through college, with help from grants and scholarships. Got a research fellowship through grad school, and I'm suffering through my first unsubsidized school loan as we speak."

"No help from your parents?"

"Not much," she said with a shrug. "Daddy and momma said I'd learn responsibility if I had to support myself at least a little, but they made sure I didn't have to sacrifice school for survival."

"And did you?"

"Well, I almost failed political science, but that wasn't because I skipped class to beg on the street," she said with a quiet snicker. She turned to him suddenly. "Oh, you mean the responsibility thing. Yeah, I guess." He laughed. "If you take a right in there," she said, pointing to an unmarked side street, "it'll take you the back way to the reptile exhibit." He nodded, taking the turn. A few moments later, they pulled into the parking lot and exited the car. He turned to her, blocking her path.

"Are you sure you're ready to do this?" he asked. Her eyebrow rose slowly. "It's been processed, not cleaned up." She glanced over his shoulder at the crime scene tape fluttering in the breeze, then back up at him.

"I'm fine." He nodded, and she fell into step next to him. She noticed the officer standing next to the door into the barn look down at Wolfe's badge clipped to his belt, and swallowed, ducking under the crime scene tape he held up for her. She stopped in the doorway, her hand pressed to her stomach as she stared around the room.

"You okay?" She nodded quickly, carefully stepping around a dried puddle of blood.

"Is that mine?" she asked quietly. Wolfe nodded.

"Head injuries tend to bleed quite a bit," he said gently.

"So where are the empty tanks?" she asked, swallowing past the lump in her throat. Glass crunched under her shoes as he walked her to the cabinets, and she inhaled sharply, her nostrils flaring. "You have a notepad and pen?"

"Yeah, hang on," he said, jogging out of the building, she assumed to his truck. She clamped a hand over her mouth, tracing the framing of the doors on the aquarium cabinets, names and birth dates written in blue felt tip on white labels in the right hand corner of each door, all in her handwriting. He returned a few moments later, the glass alerting her to his proximity, and she looked up, eyes brimming with tears. Concern filled his features, but she shook her head, taking the paper and pen from him.

"I have a picture catalogue of all of them at home," she said, the tremor returning to her voice. "Just let me write down names and then let's get the fuck out of here." He nodded, crossing his arms over his chest to watch. With each name, her lip trembled just a tad bit more, finally a tear spilling onto her cheek. Her hand shook as she wrote, and she crouched down to get the last name. "Oh, shit," she gasped, leaning forward against the cabinet, her head hanging.

"What?" He crouched down next to her.

"It's sixteen missing, not fifteen," she whispered. She shook her head, a tense laugh escaping as she straightened. "Breeding pair." She pointed to the bottom tank, standing and turning away.

"Is that…?" he trailed off, looking back up at her. Her back was still to him, but she nodded.

"Full clutch. A month ago," she nearly sobbed.

"Are they…?"

"No," she yelled, whirling around to face him. "Without the mother incubating they wouldn't last an hour, much less two days." She shook her head, wiping her cheeks with the back of a hand. "They were all dead before anyone even found me." He sighed, jaw clenched. "You might want to check the tank for blood," she said after a long silence, her voice strained. "Daisy probably bit him."

"Protecting her offspring." She nodded, crossing her arms. "You want me to walk you back out to the truck?"

"I remember how to get there," she said quietly. He nodded, watching her leave before turning to the tank. With one hand, he flipped open his phone, speed dialing Horatio as he peered into the shattered aquarium.

"H," he said. "We have a development." He stood and retrieved his kit, digging out a swab. "Blood evidence in a tank. Probably the burglar's." He took several samples, cradling the phone between his ear and shoulder as he labeled them. "And sixteen missing, not fifteen. … No, breeding pair. Looks like nine eggs, no survivors." He dropped the boxes into an envelope, labeled it, and put it back in his kit. "No, I'm gonna head back over to Bailey's. She said she had pictures of all the snakes, so we'll have something to compare if we track them down. I'll call you if I get anything else." He flipped his phone shut and took a minute to glance around the building, shaking his head. With a weighty sigh, he stood and headed back out to the truck. She was already in and buckled, staring out the window with her head propped on a hand. Tears streamed freely down her face. He put his kit in the back seat and climbed in, driving off without a word.

-

Wolfe sat on the couch in the foyer, both hands wrapped around a glass of her sweet tea, his thumb rubbing back and forth, squeaking in the condensation. She thumped down the stairs, dropping onto the cushion next to him with a huge photo album in her lap. He placed his notepad in her outstretched hand and after a deep breath, she opened the album, her fingers quivering as she flipped through the book, not even looking at her list of names as she pulled out an 8 by 10 inch photo of a green and yellow snake.

"Did you take these?" he asked quietly. She nodded, biting her lower lip as she ran her fingers over the next page. "They're amazing."

"Thanks," she whispered before clearing her throat. "I took a couple photography classes." She pulled another photo out, adding it to the growing pile. She stopped on a picture of a yellow and white snake, tracing the lines of the pose it had chosen with her fingers. As he stared at the picture, a few drops of water landed on the plastic sleeve with quiet splats. His gaze shifted to her face and back to the picture. "This is Daisy," she said, sniffling. She turned her head to stare at the door, rubbing her nose, her hand still flattened on the picture.

"Hey." She shook her head, and he reached out, brushing a trickle of water from her cheek. "This isn't your fault, okay?"

"I know," she whispered, another wet snort slipping past her efforts to stop it. She covered her face with a hand, shaking her head. He slid the album from her lap, setting it on the floor before wrapping an arm around her and pulling her backwards against him. After a moment of fighting it, she just let it out, turning to bury her face in his neck, her tears soaking his shirt. He didn't shush her, didn't tell her it was okay, just held her, smoothing her hair away from her face. "She's gonna be so devastated," she managed between gasps.

"We can deal with that later," he said gently, tucking her hair behind her ear, his hand lingering on her face. "But we need those pictures to make sure we find the right ones, okay?" she nodded, quieting down a little but not moving away from him. He pulled away to look at her, but she was staring at a button on his shirt.

"My car's still at the zoo," she said after a minute.

"I'll take you back to get it." She nodded, pulling away and picking up the album. "You know, if you have all of those labeled, we can sort through them for you."

"It's okay," she said, shaking her head. "There's just a few more." His brow furrowed as she flipped through quickly, taking out four more pictures and adding them to the pile. "That's all sixteen," she said, sniffing again as she held them out to him.

"I promise I'll get these back to you," he said.

"Let me get an envelope for them." She stood and started up the steps, hearing him follow her into her office. As he stood in the doorway, she ruffled through drawers looking for large envelopes, finally finding one and handing it to him. He smiled tightly, sliding the pictures into the envelope. They stood there for a moment, him looking at her, her looking at the envelope.

"Are you gonna be okay?" he asked finally.

"Not really," she said with a weak and forced smile, looking up at him. His hand found her arm, pulling her into a tight hug.

"I'll copy these and bring them back to you tomorrow," he said. She nodded against his shoulder, and he gave her one more gentle squeeze before pulling away, starting down the stairs. She leaned against the doorway, waiting until the front door closed behind him before heading back downstairs, locking the door on her way past, and headed into the kitchen. She set a tumbler on the counter and stretched onto her toes to reach the bottle of scotch she kept in the cabinet above the refrigerator, filling the glass halfway, no ice. Just as she lifted the glass to her lips, there was a knock at the door. She sighed, shuffling back to the front door. "Your car's still at the zoo," Wolfe said. She couldn't help but laugh.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

"I'm telling you, we don't use chemical herbicides in our displays." Jimmy Wheeler sat at the table in an interrogation room, arms crossed over his chest. "We pull weeds. Everything at that zoo is organic. Nothing that will hurt the animals."

"So how does a wooden stake with glyphosate end up at the zoo?" Horatio asked, staring out the window with his back to Wheeler.

"Hell if I know."

"And then end up being used to knock out our reptile expert?"

"I don't know," Jimmy repeated firmly. "Look, I can tell you it didn't come from any of our stuff. Someone must have brought it in with them."

"How often do you go into the snake barn?" Horatio asked, turning back to Jimmy.

"Not very," he answered with a shrug. "I'm not a big fan of snakes, but sometimes I have to rotate the displays." Horatio only looked at him. "You know, swap out species? The display cages are a little too small for them to be comfortable there very long. We switch them out every few hours."

"Do you do that on a regular basis?"

"I only do that when Bailey and Chris are both out and Dr. Rhodes is busy. They're pretty good about making sure there's always an expert that can take care of it, but sometimes it's not something that can be avoided." Horatio nodded.

"Did you have to rotate anything two days ago?"

"Not from the snake barn, no. I swapped out a few bugs that day, but I was mostly in the office," Jimmy said with a shrug. "And giving tours through the avian exhibit."

"Do you know of a facility in the area that has a lynx?"

"There's a cat sanctuary out in the county, but I don't know if they have any."

"Is there a warehouse on the property?

"Probably more than one," Jimmy answered with a quizzical expression. Horatio nodded.

"Thank you," he said curtly, quickly leaving the room. He found Calliegh down the hall in the AV lab, buzzing through surveillance tapes from the exterior of the barn. She glanced up as he entered the room, taking a chair next to her. "Find anything?"

"Nothing we can use, as of yet," she said, shaking her head. "I've got one more camera to check."

"When you're finished with that, go ahead and write it up and then start looking for a cat sanctuary in Dade County. Mr. Wheeler couldn't tell me if they have a lynx, but he did say they have several warehouses."

"You're thinking it's a local operation?"

"More than likely," Horation answered. "But I also want you to check inspection records."

"See if any of the warehouses were empty the last time someone went out there," she finished.

"Thank you, Calleigh."

"No problem."

-

Wolfe sat at a table, sixteen photos spread out in two rows of eight, evenly spaced, a herpetology book in his lap. Going from the notes Bailey had given him, he labeled each picture with the information she'd provided – name, age, and species. To her list, he added what he thought might be unique markings for each of them, hoping it would make identification easier should they find multiple specimens and have to tell them apart. He glanced up to see Delko standing in the doorway.

"What's up?" he asked, turning back to the photos.

"Devlin took these?" Wolfe only nodded, attaching another label to the back of a photo and turning it over. "They're good."

"She's got an eye for it," Wolfe said with a small shrug.

"So what happens if we find more than the ones taken from the zoo?"

"I'm hoping I can pick out some individual characteristics on each, make sorting them out a little easier," Wolfe said with a heavy sigh. "But I don't really know for sure how to tell what's remarkable and what's not."

"Do we know what to do with the ones that didn't come from the zoo?"

"I don't know," Wolfe said, looking up at Delko with a pensive expression. "I bet the zoo wouldn't mind taking them. I don't know if the ASPCA would adopt them out or not."

"You know," Delko said, taking a seat across from Wolfe, "if we find a warehouse full of stolen animals, I'd suggest calling in an expert to check them out and determine which belong to the zoo and which don't. There might even be someone out there looking for them." Wolfe nodded slowly, moving on to the next picture. "Are these the copies or the originals?"

"The originals," Wolfe said. "I'm giving the copies back to Bailey."

"Think she'll mind?"

"Doubt it," Wolfe answered. "There's no difference, I guess. Digital pictures print out just like our photo copier does. But we have to have the originals as evidence." Delko nodded. "You have any luck with the mud?"

"Glyphosate," Delko said.

"The herbicide?" Delko handed him the printout. "Zoos don't use herbicides. Not in displays."

"Could have been from somewhere else in the zoo." Wolfe's brow crinkled in concentration as he read over the report. He looked up at Delko, handing the paper back.

"Or someone could have brought it with them."

"Hey Ryan?" They both looked to the door, watching Calleigh walk in. "Oh, you're in the middle of something," she said, looking at the photos spread out on the table.

"I'm not," Delko said, standing.

"Good. We've got somewhere to be," she said, peering over Wolfe's shoulder at the photos. "These are gorgeous," she commented. She glanced at Ryan. "What's on your shirt?" He looked down at himself, then gave her a small shrug.

"Tears." Calleigh's eyebrow rose, her lips forming a silent oh before turning back to Delko.

"The Building Department is pulling the most recent blueprints they have of a big cat sanctuary out in the county," she said.

"And you need help picking them up?"

"And then we're going back to the crime scene to finish processing so we can release it to the cleanup crew. Director's getting anxious about getting it back."

"Did you process the blood I collected from the tank?" Wolfe asked, looking up at Delko.

"No, I did," Calleigh said. "It was a match to the blood Delko found on the glass, and there was an anticoagulant present as well."

"An anticoagulant? What kind?" Delko asked.

"Organic," she said with a sly smile. "All snakes have a natural anticoagulant in their saliva."

"That tank had a breeding pair and clutch of eggs," Wolfe said. "Mother probably bit the guy to try to protect them."

"Which was it?" she asked, walking back to the table of pictures. He picked up the photo and handed it to her.

"Daisy," he said. "Albino striped ball python. And from what Bailey said, they're rare."

"Striped, huh?" Delko said, leaning over Calleigh's shoulder to look at the picture too. "I thought ball pythons had blotches of color."

"It's heritable," said Wolfe. "The color pattern is determined by the DNA. Albino is one recessive trait, striping is another recessive trait. Both Daisy and her boyfriend, Duke," he continued, reaching for a photo of the male, "are striped albinos."

"So the babies would be striped albinos," Calleigh said.

"Not necessarily," Wolfe countered. "Depends on what the parents' genotypes are. If one of them has a dominant gene for either that wasn't expressed, it doesn't mean it won't be expressed in the offspring."

"So there's no promising future buyers you'll have a certain type in the clutch."

"Litter," Wolfe corrected. "It's a clutch until the babies hatch. Then it's a litter." His brows furrowed. "Will you pick up the eggs for me?"

"You want to find out what the babies inherited?" Delko asked. Wolfe only nodded, and Delko shrugged. "Sure."

-

"You got a minute Alex?" Wolfe held the door to the autopsy room with an elbow, holding a plastic box in his hands. She looked up from a clipboard, lifting her pen from the paper.

"You got a body in there?" she asked suspiciously, nodding toward the box.

"Nine, actually." Her eyebrow rose, and he grinned, waltzing the rest of the way into the room, setting the box gently on an exam table.

"This is the zoo case, isn't it," she said, popping the lid off. "Poor babies."

"I don't need them autopsied," he said after a moment of watching the eggs sit there. "I just need to get them out and see what they looked like."

"Morbid curiosity?" Alex asked with a smirk.

"Something like that." He shrugged, reaching into the box and extracting the eggs one by one. "More along the lines of genetic curiosity." She glanced up at him, moving the box away from the collection on a folded square of medical napkin. "The parents were both striped albino ball pythons. Both traits are recessive. I'm curious to find out how many of the babies ended up looking like their parents."

"Python mothers are the best mothers in the snake world," Alex said, rolling up a tray with fresh autopsy utensils.

"Yeah?"

"They lay their eggs and never leave them, not even to eat," she explained with a tiny smile. "Do you know how they maintain the temperature?" He shook his head. "Shivering."

"Really."

"They wrap around them and shiver to keep them just the right temperature." She pinched an egg, the shell soft and leathery, and snipped a small incision, switching the scissors for a scalpel to slice the rest open. "If it gets too hot or too cold, you end up with an imbalance of gender. But just the right temperature, they come out fifty-fifty. How old are these little guys?"

"A month or so," he answered, an eyebrow arching as she extracted the deceased baby corpse from the egg, using a nearby paper towel to clean the slime off. "That one's white."

"You once said you had a keen grasp of the obvious," she said with a small laugh. The conversation lulled as she extracted the rest of the babies, laying them out on another napkin square. "I'm afraid I don't know how to tell the gender."

"Too early anyway," Wolfe said with a shrug, stretching the dead snakes out. They were maybe six inches long. "She's got a hatchling at home. Said it would be a couple more weeks before she could tell."

"Does this help?" she asked, gesturing toward the snakes.

"Yeah, actually," he said. "Thanks."

"No problem. You want them in a jar?"

"They're evidence."

-

Wolfe screeched to a halt outside an evidence room, changing course to join Calleigh and Delko. They hung a blueprint copy on the wall, next to the sixteen pictures of the missing snakes.

"Is that the sanctuary?" he asked, sliding his hands into his lab coat pockets.

"Sure is," Calleigh answered after a quick glance over her shoulder. "And inspection reports say this warehouse," she pointed to a building away from the rest of the structures, "only had six foot shelving and dust in it."

"Nice."

"Problem," Delko interjected. "We don't have enough evidence to get a warrant to search the place."

"The hair."

"Not enough," Calleigh said with a sigh. "If we can connect the herbicide to them, we might be able to swing it, but right now, we've got nothing."

"What about employee records?" Delko asked. "There could be someone that has access to both places."

"Same problem," Calleigh said, shaking her head. "We'd have to have a warrant to get the records."

"Wait a minute," Wolfe said. "We already have clearance at the zoo, right? Cross reference people at the zoo who have access to the snake barn with the sanctuary." Calleigh smiled.

"I'm on it," she said, walking to the door. "Have you finished the sketches?"

"Not yet," Wolfe said. "I was on my way to do that when I saw you all in here. I'm almost done."

"I'll take another look at what we have," Delko volunteered. "See if we're missing anything."

"Chris Grimes," Horatio said, entering the interrogation room.

"Have you found the snakes?" Chris asked, looking up at the officials walking in.

"We were hoping you could tell us where to find them," Detective Salas said, closing the door behind her.

"How would I know?"

"Have you been to the big cat sanctuary outside of town recently?" Horatio asked.

"I've never been there," Chris answered slowly.

"Really." Chris nodded. "See, we found a lynx hair on the window the intruder came through. A window that only opens from the inside."

"So?"

"So your zoo doesn't have a lynx right now."

"That's a problem," Yelena added.

"We found the hair on the latch on the inside of the window. Only three people were in that building that day. Dr. Rhodes, Miss Devlin, and you," Horatio said, his gaze to Chris.

"That hair could have been there for ages," Chris scoffed, shaking his head.

"But it wasn't," Horatio said. "It was stuck to the latch in mud that we matched to the stake used to assault Miss Devlin." He paused, tilting his head to the side. "So try again." Chris swallowed thickly. "Here's what I think happened," Horatio said. "You brought the stake from the sanctuary and wiped the mud somewhere on your person, picking up the hair. You opened the window when no one was there and propped it open with the stake, leaving the mud and the hair behind." Chris blinked. "Then someone from your little operation snuck in when no one was supposed to be there, but Miss Devlin just happened to be working late that night and doing her walk through of the barn."

"You're looking at aggravated assault and twenty-five counts of animal cruelty, Chris," Yelena crooned, leaning over the table.

"She wasn't supposed to be there that late," Chris stammered. "No one is supposed to get hurt."

"But things didn't turn out that way, did they, Chris?" Horatio asked. "Where are the snakes?" Chris shook his head.

"We can't help you if you don't cooperate," Yelena said firmly, crossing her arms over her chest.

"The sanctuary," he mumbled. Horatio dropped a pad of paper and a pen on the table in front of Chris.

"I want names," he said, staring the vet intern down before leaving the room, Yelena in tow.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Wolfe looked up, waving dust away from his face as he walked toward the door of the warehouse, tires crunching in the gravel driveway. A black Dodge Dakota stopped just outside the crime scene tape, and Bailey hopped out, jogging toward him along the tape without bothering to shut the door behind her.

"You really found them?" she asked, her expression somewhere between relief and concern. He lifted the tape and she ducked under it, walking alongside him back toward the warehouse.

"More than that," he said. "Think you can handle a few more?"

"How are they?" she asked after a quick glance at him.

"That's why you're here," Wolfe answered. "Delko and Calleigh are photographing everything now and then it's your turn." She nodded.

"Miss Devlin." She stopped, managing a tight smile up at the man extending his hand, and she took it in a quick handshake. "Lieutenant Horatio Caine. How you doin'?" He looked down at her, and she knew he was inspecting her injuries. She was instantly glad the swelling had gone down almost completely, the bruising now a sick yellowish color.

"I'm okay," she answered, the smile widening.

"We're almost ready for you," he said. She nodded, swallowing nervously. "It's not completely a happy ending, but you knew that already, didn't you?"

"I figured," she said with a tiny shrug. He nodded, glancing at Delko and Calleigh as they joined the group.

"Miss Devlin, this is Eric and Calleigh, CSIs," Horatio said, gesturing toward the pair.

"Bailey," she said, nodding to both of them.

"We're all finished," Calleigh said. Bailey immediately liked her, just because of her accent. "Can we help you in any way?" Bailey glanced up at Wolfe quickly.

"I'm not sure yet," she said with a wince. "I'd like to take a look first." Delko stayed behind with Horatio, greeting Tripp as he appeared from outside the warehouse. She heard them talking about having several people in custody as they walked away. "God," she whispered, shaking her head as the aquariums came into view. Twenty ten-gallon tanks lined a shelf in the back of the warehouse, several species housed in each. The water bowls were nearly dry, and there was no evidence of any rodents in any of the containers.

"We counted sixty-three, but it's not official," Calleigh said gently. Bailey clicked her tongue.

"Can we get a big bucket of clean water in here?" she asked quietly. "Like a five gallon or so?" Wolfe nodded, heading back toward the rest of the law enforcement standing around. "Ryan," she called. He stopped, turning back toward her. "Call Dr. Rhodes and ask her to bring a box of burlap sacks in the van."

"Got it."

"Okay, let's see what we have," she said, sliding the first of the tanks from the shelf and setting it gently on the ground. She pried the mesh lid off, the snakes instantly cowering. "It's okay," she whispered, reaching in to grab the closest one. She held it up, and Calleigh watched in fascination as she quickly checked it over. "We need more people," Bailey said, smiling at Calleigh apologetically. Calleigh nodded, flipping open her phone.

"Horatio, we need some manpower back here." Bailey glanced back toward where the group of people was, watching a large collection head their way. Wolfe appeared as she handed Calleigh a nervous but otherwise okay red tailed boa and reached back into the container. As Wolfe set the bucket on the ground next to the aquarium, and the boa Calleigh held started moving toward it, tongue flicking quickly.

"That's Lacey," Bailey said, nodding toward the snake in Calleigh's hands. "Red tailed boa."

"I saw your photographs," Calleigh said with an appreciative smile. "They're beautiful."

"Thanks," Bailey replied, sitting Indian-style on the ground, wrestling a large black and brown snake. "And this is Brutus," she grunted, trying to get the snake to cooperate. "Burmese python."

"I guess when you work with them every day you know them on sight," Calleigh said, watching Lacey drink greedily, dripping water from her chin as she turned back to Calleigh, winding around her neck. "Um…"

"She's fine," Bailey said after glancing up. "If she starts squeezing too hard let me know." Calleigh pursed her lips, dropping her hands into her lap as she snake used her as a jungle gym, finally settling her head on top of Calleigh's. "She's a little one, actually," Bailey said, squinting as she pulled something from Brutus' skin. "Damn mites."

"Bailey?" Everyone standing there looked up as Dr. Rhodes ran in, hugging a large box to her chest.

"Back here, Mary," Bailey called, standing and handing Brutus over to the closest officer. "You brought the van?"

"Yes ma'am," Rhodes said with a nod, Bailey taking the box from her and ripping it open.

"Okay, let's do this. I'll go through and find the worst off so Mary can take them and get started." Mary nodded, stroking Lacey's head, still atop Calleigh's head. "Let's get these tanks down and opened up," she added, reaching for another, along with all the other officers. Soon all of them were peering over the aquariums, pointing and consulting. As Bailey leaned over, a white and yellow monster stretched up toward her, tongue flicking. "It's okay, sweetie," she said, reaching into the tank and extracting the snake. "You're okay." She planted a kiss on the snake's cheek, and Wolfe laughed as the snake moved to press its nose against Bailey's. "Daisy, meet Ryan and Calleigh," she said, turning for introductions. "Will you take her?" Ryan's eyebrow rose, but she was already untangling herself and wrapping Daisy around him.

"Bit bigger than the ball python baby," he said quietly. She snickered, shaking her head.

"Just stand there," she instructed, so he did, the snake crawling around and greeting each passerby.

A half hour later, Mary was on her way back to the zoo, and Bailey was back to inspecting each survivor individually before handing it off to be watered and put into a burlap sack. Three were dead, only one of them from the zoo, and the final count of survivors was sixty-two. Those that didn't survive were photographed individually and placed in evidence bags, Bailey looking on sadly. She'd cry for them later.

After three more hours of on-site exams, about fifty burlap sacks were loaded into Wolfe, Calleigh, Horatio, and Bailey's cars, and they caravanned back to the zoo, carrying the snakes into the veterinary center. Bailey and Mary sorted them into the open tanks they had in the exam areas as the CSIs carried them in.

"How are they?" Bailey asked, glancing at Mary.

"Jasmine has a few infected scales. I already started her on antibiotics."

"Oral or subcutaneous?"

"Subcutaneous," Mary answered with a grimace. "She didn't like it, but she took it better than most."

"Which one's Jasmine?" Wolfe asked.

"Tree boa," Bailey answered, pointing to a black and bright yellow snake lying curled on top of itself in the corner of its tank. "We're keeping the worst separate."

"I've got their heaters cranked up to about 102. They can't create their own fevers. And Plush had a scale ripped out," Mary said. Bailey made a face, shaking her head.

"Carpet python," she said, glancing at Wolfe. "Next to Jasmine."

"Plush carpet," he said after a beat. Calleigh chuckled quietly. "Cute."

"I went ahead and put him on an antibiotic, too," Mary continued, "just in case. Subcutaneous as well. Two unknowns are a little thin. I've got Jimmy doing some blood work on them. Another unknown has a horrible case of ticks. She's swimming right now."

"Swimming?" Calleigh asked.

"Warm water," Bailey answered. "Sometimes it drowns the ticks, sometimes it doesn't, but it's the first step."

"I'll have Jimmy draw some blood once she's out," Mary said. Bailey nodded. "Four unknowns have a few ticks, one of those has a tick on the eyecap, and six have various abrasions and scale problems that don't seem to be too serious, but we'll keep an eye on them and start with the silver sulfadiazine cream." She sighed, urging the last of the survivors into a tank before moving her hair out of her eyes. "It should have been a lot worse, Bailey," she said quietly. Bailey only nodded, wandering around the room to look at the snakes.

"Do you know what's going to happen to the ones that didn't make it?" Bailey asked, turning to Calleigh and Wolfe. They looked at each other. "Mary could autopsy them, find out what happened."

"Think Alex could bring them over?" Wolfe asked Calleigh.

"I'll call her," she answered. "Knowing her, she'll want to help. I'll go ahead and head back to the lab. It was nice meeting you all." Mary smiled as Calleigh winked and left the room, already on the phone with Alex. Bailey dropped into a chair with a heavy sigh.

"Go home, Bailey," Mary said gently. "Jimmy and I can handle this."

"Sixty-two snakes? Are you sure?"

"Absolutely," Mary said with a nod. "There's not really anything that's too pressing right now. The ones with ticks can wait until tomorrow, except the one that's really bad. Jasmine and Plush have already started and there's nothing else we can do at this point. We'll go ahead and quarantine the unknowns that need to eat and try to feed them. If they don't take, we can force-feed them in the morning. It's going to be busy around here for a while, but we can handle it. I can call the university if we need help."

"Call me if anything, and I mean _anything_ happens," Bailey insisted with a stern expression, prompting a smile from Mary.

"You know I will. Now go home. I'll see you tomorrow." Bailey smiled and nodded, groaning as she pulled herself from the chair.

"Oh, by the way," she said, reaching for her keys. "Brutus and Duke had a few mites, but I think I got them all. We should check them for a while. Give 'em a bath tomorrow."

"Oh, Brutus is gonna hate you," Mary said in a sing-songy voice.

"He'll get over it," Bailey shot back with a grin, following Wolfe out.

"Thanks Ryan," Mary called, smiling as he lifted a hand to wave without turning around. She shook her head, joining Jimmy in the surgery room where the new addition was soaking. Wolfe and Bailey moseyed out to the parking lot, Bailey fiddling with her keys. Neither said a word as they both walked to Bailey's truck, stopping beside it. She stared at her hands for a while, turning a key ring around her finger before looking up at him with a tiny smile.

"Thank you," she said quietly.

"This is why I like CSI better than patrol," he said with a smile. "I get to see the end."

"You gave it the end, Ryan."

"I helped," he said, adding a shrug. He cleared his throat, looking away for a second. "I have to finish some stuff up at the lab." She nodded, her eyes returning to her key chain. "Can I bring your pictures by a little later?"

"I can print them out again if you need to keep them," she said. His face fell, and he took a breath, pausing.

"I already copied them. We've got a photo printer." Her eyes met his, the smile returning.

"You're just on top of things, aren't you?" Another shrug. "I'll be there," she said with a nod. "And I don't have to be at work until ten, so I'll be up a while." He nodded, glancing back toward the building before looking back to her. After an awkward moment, she reached out, wrapping him in a hug and whispering "thank you" again. He smiled, his arms going around her as well, the embrace lasting longer than would be considered professional had they been in the lobby of the lab.

"I'll see you later," he said. She nodded against his shoulder, pulling away. He shoved his hands in his pockets and turned toward his Hummer, glancing over his

shoulder and waving as she drove past.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Bailey sighed as she stepped through her front door, the officer once keeping a watchful eye from her porch now gone. She set her backpack down next to the couch and dropped her keys on the side table, lifting her arms overhead and leaning back into a giant stretch. Her vision blurred, and she leaned against the wall, eyes closed, until the dizzy spell passed, continuing into the kitchen. After downing a glass of tap water, she went back to the den, taking a seat in the floor just looking around at her collection. Delilah was still curled around her eggs, her head following any movement in the room. Her mate, whose name was naturally Sampson, slithered around his habitat, the forked tip of his tongue fluttering through the mesh in the lid of his aquarium. She smiled lightly, turning to her ball pythons. Her black and gold male, a "normal" ball python named Zeus, was curled under a Tupperware cereal container filled with sphagnum moss, his mate Aphrodite, an albino, curled up inside the container, droplets of water collecting on the inside from the moisture.

In an adjacent aquarium, eight of their offspring crawled around, two of them marked in white and pale yellow like their mother, and five of them marked like their father. The last one, the suspected male Bailey had introduced to Wolfe, was marked like his father, but the tip of his tail faded into albino, a peculiar set of markings. It was part of the reason Bailey wanted to keep him. She sighed, picking herself up and heading upstairs. The warehouse was hot and dusty, and she felt like she was covered in crust, between the dirt and sweat. All she needed was a shower and a nap.

-

Wolfe pulled into her driveway, taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly before getting out of the car, smiling lightly. She sat on the porch swing, where the police officer standing watch had been. A white and yellow snake was crawling around, wrapped around her shoulders and spilling into her lap, his red and white blotched tail curling around her calf.

"You've got a thing for albinos," Wolfe said. She smiled, planting a kiss on the snake's back before looking up at him.

"They're rare," she said with a shrug. "Genetics, right?" He nodded, brow arched. "I have a specimen I want you to take a closer look at."

"Okay…?"

"The baby you were holding," she said, struggling to stand under Sampson's weight. "I don't think you noticed."

"Noticed what?"

"His tail," she said, leading him through her front door. Wolfe leaned against the doorframe of the den as she put Sampson back in his tank, securing the lid before moving to her baby's aquarium. She handed the snake over to Wolfe. "I know the allele for albino is recessive, but I wondered why it's just in his tail."

"Lack of penetrance," Wolfe said, smiling as the baby tried to squirm his tail away from his fingers. "Sometimes the gene is expressed, but not completely. Cystic fibrosis is the same."

"Just because the parent has a mild case doesn't mean the child that inherits it will," she said nodding. "But I thought coloration was cut and dry."

"I don't know," he said with a shrug. "We didn't get into snakes." She smiled, taking the snake back. "Pretty cool lookin' though."

"I thought so too," she said. "That's another reason I want to keep him. You want something to drink?" He smiled, following her into the kitchen, hands shoved into his pockets. "I get my stitches taken out tomorrow," she said quietly, her voice echoing in the refrigerator.  
"Yeah?"

"Yep. Doc said it wouldn't scar too bad, thank god," she sighed, handing him a glass of her tea. He nodded, and the conversation lulled, the only sounds in the room being the tinking of their ice against their glasses as they alternated sips.

"I've got your pictures in the Hummer," he said, hooking a thumb back toward the front door. "I'll be right back." She chuckled as he left the room, shaking her head slightly as she walked back to the door. He hopped up the steps, handing over the envelope as he closed the door behind him.

"Are you okay?" she asked with a tiny laugh.

"Yeah, fine, why?" She shook her head, shrugging as she set the envelope on the side table, sitting on the couch.

"How's the case?"

"Almost all wrapped up," he said, sitting next to her, leaning back in the corner of the couch. "Charges are filed and all, we just have to finish up all the reports and stuff before the arraignment."

"When is the arraignment?" she asked quietly.

"Next week, why?"

"I'd like to go."

"Bailey…"

"I want to go, Ryan," she insisted. "I was a part of this, I have to testify, and I want to be there for the trial."

"The arraignment isn't a big deal," he said, shaking his head. "It's over in five minutes. Hell, even I'm not going." She nodded, staring at her hands in her lap. He sighed, sitting up and brushing her hair away from her face. She looked up at him, his hand lingering on her cheek. "Listen, you can't let this take over. It happened, and it'll get resolved."

"So what am I supposed to do?"

"Move on," he said quietly, his eyes shifting down to her lips and back up to her eyes. She copied the movement, and closed the distance between them. Both hesitated, and her stomach flip-flopped as their lips finally met. She wound her arms around his neck, turning toward him. He slid an arm around her waist, deepening the kiss as she moved to sit astride him, her fingers moving to the buttons of his shirt. His hands closed around hers, and he pulled away, turning his head to the side with a sigh. "We can't do this," he said quietly, licking his lips. Her brows furrowed, and she stood, rubbing her fingers over her lips. "The case is still technically open. Both of us have to testify, and if the defense gets wind…" he trailed off with a sigh.

"Conflict of interest could jeopardize the case," she finished.

"I'm sorry." She shook her head, crossing her arms over her chest. "I should probably go," he added, motioning toward the door as he stood. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly with a nod. "But once this is over…" She smiled, but didn't say anything. "I should go," he repeated quietly, starting for the door.

"Ryan?" He paused, turning back to her. She closed the distance between them, laying a hand against his cheek. His eyes closed for a moment, and when he opened them again she was smiling lightly. She planted a quick kiss on his lips and took a step back. "Thanks again." He snapped an arm around her waist, hauling her against him and kissed her passionately, pulling away with a smack. As the door shut behind him, she let out a laugh.

-

She tried with all she had to keep from looking at Ryan as she walked to the witness stand. She'd been there every day of the trial and he'd not been there with her, but now was his day to speak, the same as hers. She swallowed thickly as she slid into the chair, folding her hands in her lap. They'd only spoken to each other over the phone a few times over the past two months, both of them having been busy. She lifted her right hand as instructed, barely hearing the oath being read to her before agreeing as she was supposed to. As the prosecutor rose to question her, she felt Ryan's eyes on her, fighting the blush creeping into her cheeks.

"Please state your name and occupation for the record."

"Bailey Taylor Devlin," she said quietly. The prosecutor nodded, stepping out from behind the massive desk. "I'm a veterinary intern at the Miami zoo."

"What's your specialization?"

"Herpetology," she answered. "Constrictors, specifically." The gash on her forehead had healed to an angry pink scar, the doctor assuring her it would fade and maybe even eventually disappear. She touched it inadvertently, wiping sweat from her skin.

"You were involved in the incident at the zoo two months ago. Will you explain what happened?" She took a breath and let it out slowly, focusing on a spot on the wood in front of her.

"I was checking on the snakes in their holding cages. We don't have any lights in there except the night bulbs in the tanks, so it was dark." She sighed, clenching her hands together to keep them from shaking. "I heard a noise and thought it was a co-worker, so I said his name, but no one answered. I heard the noise again and got scared so I started backing toward the door and ran into someone." She pursed her lips for a moment, looking down at her hands, noticing they were clasped together so tightly her knuckles were white. "He grabbed my shoulder and threw me back. I tripped over a feeding cage and cut my shin open, and when I started to get up, I heard this whooshing sound, like when you swing a bat." She closed her eyes, shaking her head a little before looking back up at the prosecutor. "The last thing I remember seeing is a piece of wood coming at me."

"What's the next thing you remember?" the prosecutor asked gently. She allowed herself one quick glance at Ryan before returning to staring at the spot on the wood.

"I woke up in the hospital. Someone said my name," she said quietly. "There was a CSI and a detective there, asking me the same questions you are now."

"Do you remember which detective and CSI where there?"

"Um, Detective Salas and CSI Wolfe," she said. The prosecutor nodded again, turning back to his table.

"No more questions, your honor." The defense attorney stood, a short and round man with greasy black hair and an expensive-looking suit. He tugged on his jacket, barely getting the button fastened around his belly, and stepped away from his desk.

"Did the detective and CSI ask you anything other than what you remember happening?"

"Uh, CSI Wolfe asked me if I could tell him which snakes had been stolen," she said after a pause. "I didn't know any had been and was upset," she said, a tiny quiver in her voice. "He showed me a sketch of the building, but I couldn't remember enough to be of any help." The attorney's eyebrows shot up.

"You worked at the zoo for how long?"

"Two years," she answered slowly.

"And you couldn't remember where you kept certain snakes, even though you'd worked with them for two years."

"I got whacked in the head with a chunk of wood hard enough to knock me out for a good eight ours," she said, the anger rising. "I was in the hospital on God knows how many sedatives and analgesics, and you expect me to have been able to remember specific details just because I knew it by heart before I was attacked? I'm sorry. I wasn't all there at the moment."

"Of course," the attorney said with a shrug, turning away to pace. "My apologies." Ryan's jaw clenched and relaxed, his brows furrowed.

"And it was kind of hard to just look at sketches and know where they were supposed to go in the building. I couldn't focus well enough to be able to read the labels. I didn't want to guess and give them wrong information."

"So what did you do?"

"I told him I'd have to see the aquariums."

"And he agreed to take you to the crime scene."

"Yes."

"Anything else?"

"I told him I was scared they'd been taken to be sold on the black market," she said quietly. "He asked me what I knew and I told him what I'd heard from a seminar I took a couple of months previously."

"So you ended up going out to the crime scene to make a list of what was missing, is that correct?"

"Yes."

"And what was missing?"

"Sixteen exotics," she answered. "Two tree boas, a Burmese python, three red tailed boas, two albino red tailed boas, two carpet pythons, two diamond pythons, a reticulated python baby, a full grown reticulated python, and two albino Burmese pythons," she listed.

"And they were all found, correct?"

"Yes, they were all found," she said flatly. "The full grown retic was dead, one of the tree boas had three infected scales, a carpet python had a scale ripped out and internal parasites, and all of them were infested with mites, ticks, or both. Not to mention we found sixty-five snakes, including those that belong to the zoo, all of which had various medical problems."

"So the only dead snake from the zoo's group was the reticulated python, is that correct?"

"No," she said firmly. The attorney spun around to face her, brow arched.

"No?" She shook her head. "Care to explain?"

"When a breeding pair of albino red tailed boas were stolen, their clutch of nine eggs was left without their mother to incubate them. They froze to death because of the theft," she said.

"But they didn't die because of any kind of neglect on the part of the thief."

"Yes, they did," she insisted. "They died because the thief didn't care enough to check and make sure those snakes were the only ones in there. He took the only thing keeping those babies alive – their mother – so yes, it was a direct result of the thief's neglect."

"I see," the attorney said, scratching his chin. "So you compiled this list of missing specimens and then what?" She sighed, staring at her hands in her lap again, disgusted by the man questioning her.

"I told CSI Wolfe that I had pictures of all of the snakes at my house. He drove me back, I gave him the pictures, and he left."

"You were considered a suspect at one time, is that correct?"

"Everyone that had access to the barn was considered a suspect, so yes, I was."

"And what was it that convinced investigators that you were not a suspect?"

"You'd have to ask them," she said. "I was printed and gave them a DNA sample voluntarily, but I was the victim here."

"How long have you worked with the defendant?"

"A couple months," she said, raising an eyebrow.

"How close would you describe your relationship with the defendant?"

"Not very," she answered with a shrug. "He works with lizards and amphibians mostly, sometimes with snakes. We didn't have enough time between the two of us to really get close. They kept us busy doing different things."

"So you didn't know him well enough to plan a burglary, then."

"What?" she gasped.

"Objection, your honor," the prosecutor nearly yelled, his chair screeching backwards as he stood. "Miss Devlin has been established to have been the victim here. This line of questioning is ridiculous."

"Your honor," the defense attorney said with a smarmy smile, "I'm simply trying to show that the investigation failed to be thorough because of the haste with which the witness was excluded as a suspect."

"I was the victim," she spat.

"Sustained. The jury will disregard the question," the judge instructed, looking sternly at the defense attorney, who nodded, pursing his lips to think for a moment.

"Now, Miss Devlin," he continued, "you are involved with the CSI working your case, are you not?" Her mouth dropped open, and she glanced up at the judge.

"Objection," the prosecutor sighed, shaking his head. "Speculation."

"Goes to a possible conflict of interest in the case, your honor," the defense attorney said simply.

"Overruled. Miss Devlin, you will answer the question."

"You'll have to narrow it down for me," she said after a moment. "There were several CSIs working on this case."

"Wolfe," he said, not bothering to look at his notes.

"No," she said. "I'm not involved with him."

"Your honor, I enter into evidence exhibit 36," the attorney said, waltzing back to his desk." Her brows furled, and she looked to the prosecutor who was shuffling through papers quickly.

"Your honor," the prosecutor said, glancing up quickly. "The prosecution has no record of an exhibit 36. We were not supplied with a copy of this discovery by the defense."

"We just came into possession of this evidence yesterday," the attorney said.

"And how exactly did you come into possession of it?" the judge asked.

"I'm afraid I cannot reveal my source, your honor," the attorney said after a small pause. "But it proves that this witness is lying about her relationship with said CSI."

"You're on a short leash here," the judge warned. "I'll allow it for now." The prosecutor stared up at the judge in disbelief, doing a double take at the collection of photos dropped in front of him.

"Consider that your copy," the defense attorney said quietly. The prosecutor sat slowly, and Ryan's eyes closed as he watched the prosecutor flip through them. "Now, Miss Devlin," he continued, approaching Bailey. "Do you recall when these pictures were taken?" She took the photos from him, staring at him as she held them for a moment before flipping through.

"They were taken outside the veterinary clinic on the zoo campus, a few hours after we got the snakes back to the zoo," she said.

"And will you describe what's happening in the pictures, please?"

"I'm hugging CSI Wolfe," she said, dropping the pictures on the ledge of the witness box.

"Would you like to explain?"

"I was thanking him for his help," she said flatly.

"Looks a little more serious than a thank you," the attorney said, holding a photo up for the jury.

"I was seriously grateful," she said. He looked back to her.

"Grateful enough to do him a favor or two?"

"Objection!" The prosecutor launched from his chair again, nearly knocking it over.

"Sustained," the judge said. "Does the defense have any more questions for this witness?"

"Just one more, your honor," the attorney said, stuffing his hands in his pockets and resuming his pacing. "Miss Devlin, was CSI Wolfe ever at your house for any reason other than one pertaining to the case?"

"No, sir," she said. "The last time he was at my house he was returning copies of the pictures I'd given him of the snake."

"We have no more use for this witness, your honor."

"You may step down," the judge said. She wiped her hands on her skirt, walking on trembling legs back to her seat in the last bench of the courtroom, avoiding Ryan's eyes as she passed.

"The prosecution calls CSI Ryan Wolfe." Reality faded out as she continued to sit there, voices blurred. She returned to the moment she'd shared a kiss with the current witness, her attention snapping back to reality when the prosecutor shouted out another objection. Ryan was beet red, staring in shock at the defense attorney.

"Your honor, I'm simply trying to establish whether or not this witness conducted himself in a way that could be a conflict of interest in this case," the attorney said with a shrug.

"Your honor, CSI Wolfe is here to testify on the evidence he collected," the prosecutor argued. "This is nothing more than speculation, and is making a mockery of this court."

"Your honor," the defense attorney interjected, "we have reason to believe that Mr. Wolfe here conducted himself in an unprofessional manner that jeopardized his role in the investigation."

"And what is that reason?" the judge asked. "Or can you not reveal your source?"

"The latter, your honor." The judge leaned back in his chair with a heavy sigh.

"Mr. Wolfe," the judge said, turning to Ryan, "Do we have any reason to allow this question or can we move along?" Ryan swallowed, looking back to the defense attorney.

"I find her attractive, yes," he said quietly.

"And did you ever act on that attraction?"

"Objection," the prosecutor said, still standing. "Don't answer that question, Wolfe."

"Sustained."

"Yes," Ryan said angrily. "I did. I made a mistake, and I corrected it." The prosecutor flopped back in his chair. "But despite what you might think, that mistake never interfered with the investigation. The investigation was already over and in the D.A.'s hands."

"So what kind of mistake are we talking here?" the attorney pressed. Ryan's eyes closed, his cheeks flushing a brighter shade of red. Bailey's lip quivered, and she turned to the jury, watching them stare at Ryan, waiting for an answer.

"I kissed her," Ryan nearly whispered. The attorney nodded, and Bailey's cheeks heated.

"So how did you correct that mistake?"

"I stopped and told her it wasn't a good idea, and I left."

"You left."

"Her house. I was returning her pictures." He sounded defeated. "I didn't go back after that. I haven't seen her since."

"Have you had any contact with her?"

"We've spoken over the phone a few times," Ryan answered. "But it never affected the investigation."

"You're sure of that."

"Yes, I'm sure," Ryan said firmly. Bailey stood quickly, the doors to the courtroom squeaking as they swung open for her. Tears streamed down her face as she pulled out of the parking lot, progressing into full blown sobs by the time she was home.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Bailey sat through the closing arguments the next day, still in a haze from the previous day of the trial. She was terrified Ryan's admission would sway the jury, especially after she'd said they weren't involved. They really weren't – it was one day and a few kisses, never anything more. It didn't really qualify as involved, as far as she was concerned. And their conversations over the phone had been innocent. She sighed, shaking her head as the defense attorney returned to the seeming conflict of interest in his summation. The jury filed out, and they waited.

-

He was sitting on her porch swing when she pulled into the drive, lowering her head to rest on the steering wheel. With a heavy sigh, she got out of the car, pulling her heels off as she walked through the yard, finally noticing him and stopping.

"Hey," he said quietly.

"Hi."

"I heard they convicted him." She nodded, staring at her shoes in her hand.

"Three more trials to go," she said. "Three more humiliations."

"Bailey…"

"Maybe this isn't a good idea," she interrupted, looking up at him.

"What do you mean?"

"This whole thing. You and me." His brows furrowed. "I mean, I like you, Ryan, I really do. But…" she trailed off, shaking her head and looking away.

"I talked to H," Ryan offered. "Since our part of the investigation was over, it's not a conflict of interest." She remained silent. "And even if nothing happens again, it's still going to come up."

"I know," she said quietly.

"So what you're saying when you say this isn't a good idea is that you've changed your mind." Her eyes closed.

"If it's not a conflict of interest why are they even bothering?"

"They're defense attorneys. That's what they do." She nodded, walking up the porch steps and jamming her key in the lock.

"I think we should talk about this," she said quietly, pushing the door open and dropping her shoes by the couch. He followed her in, shutting the door behind him.

"What's to talk about?" he asked sullenly.

"Is it going to make things worse if we start something now or do you plan on waiting through another three trials?" she asked, turning back to face him.

"I don't plan on answering the question next time," he said. She closed the distance between them, stopping toe-to-toe with him.

"And what if the judge decides it's not up to you?"

"Then I won't have a choice." Her eyebrow rose. "But they know it doesn't matter, and the D.A. will make sure the jury knows it too."

"Why did you answer?" she asked after a moment. He shrugged.

"I figured it wouldn't look as bad if I just told the truth. People make mistakes, and I wanted the jury to know I tried to fix it."

"So it was a mistake then."

"The timing was a mistake," he said quietly, lifting a hand to brush her hair away from her eyes. His lips pressed to her forehead, and she closed her eyes.

"So now what?" she asked tilting her head to look up at him.

"It's up to you," he said. She forced a small smile.

"What do you want?"

"Another one of those mistakes," he said with a smirk. Her green eyes focused on his, and he felt her thumbs slide into his belt loops at his sides.

"You're sure it won't make a difference?"

"Not with the trial." A tiny smile touched her lips and she lifted onto her toes, capturing his lips in a gentle kiss. His breath caught in his throat as her lips moved against his. She slipped her arms around his neck, pulling him closer as he wrapped her in a tight embrace. Her fingers found the hem of his shirt, tugging upwards, and he broke away just long enough for her to yank it over his head. As he pulled his shirt from his arms, dropping it on the floor, she took his hands in hers, still kissing him as she walked backwards toward the stairs. He removed his hands from hers as she backed up the first step, wrapping his hands around her thighs and pulling her against him, waiting until her arms returned around his shoulders before lifting her. Her skirt bunched around her hips as she wrapped her legs around his waist, and he carried her up the stairs, setting her gently on her bed and settling above her.

She buried her fingers in his hair as his lips attacked her neck, his fingers trembling as he tried to work the buttons of her blouse loose. Goosebumps rose on her skin as his hands skimmed along her bare sides, and all conscious thought left her for a moment as she tried to free her arms of her shirt. She arched her back to give him access to the clasp of her bra, and he snapped it open with one hand, sitting up to pull it away. A shaky breath left him as he dropped the garment to the floor. She sat up, going to work on his belt as he just stared down at her. His hands found her cheeks, pulling her lips back to his as she pushed his jeans over his hips to his knees, and she fell back, taking him with her. He worked a trail of kisses down to her navel, his thumbs hooking in the waistband of her skirt to draw it slowly down her legs. She pulled her underwear off as he untangled himself from his pants.

"Ryan?" He finished pulling off his socks before looking up at her. She was propped up on her elbows, a concerned expression on her face. "Are you sure?" A soft smile crept onto his face as he crawled back onto the bed, cradling her head in his hands. He just stared down at her face for a moment, stroking her flushed cheeks with his thumbs before kissing her softly. His lips moved to the corner of her jaw, and he whispered his answer. Her back arched, a tiny whimper escaping her as he pressed his hips to hers, giving her time to adjust before starting a slow rhythm. His lips found hers, his movements synchronized, and she dug her fingers into his back, gently catching his lower lip in her teeth. Their moans intertwined, and it was dark outside before the house stilled.

-

She woke slowly and groggily, knowing she was warmer than she usually was when she woke. Light streamed through the cracks in the blinds, spilling over the bed. She made a little sound in the back of her throat, her eyes opening slowly as she realized someone else moved behind her. An arm slipped around her waist, fingers tucking under her side. A tiny smile touched her lips, and she wrapped a hand around the forearm between her head and the pillow, sliding her fingers down his arm to his wrist before tangling her fingers in his. He gave them a gentle squeeze, nuzzling her back between her shoulder blades.

"Morning," she said quietly. He inhaled sharply, pressing against her as he stretched with a loud groan. His lips moved against her skin as he mumbled something incoherent, pulling her tighter against him. "What's that noise?"

"My phone," he whined, burying his face in her neck, giving her a quick kiss before sitting up and digging through his pants at the foot of the bed. "Wolfe." She sighed, burrowing deeper under the covers. "Yeah, gimme ten minutes." She heard the phone snap shut, and he sighed heavily.

"Towels are in the closet in the bathroom," she said, pointing toward the door. He nodded, leaning over her to kiss her forehead before shuffling into the bathroom. She drifted off again as the shower turned on, waking again as the bathroom door clicked open. With a light smile, she rolled onto her back, letting her head loll to the side to watch him dress. "You know, you're pretty hot for a geek," she said with a smirk. He chuckled, shaking his head as he pulled his shoes on.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Oh, come on," she groaned, laughing lightly. "Like I have room to talk. We're both geeks."

"I know you're a geek, but what makes me a geek?" he asked, flopping on the bed next to her, brushing her hair behind her ear.

"You hang out with microscopes and computers all day?"

"Yeah, but I get to carry a gun," he said, wiggling his eyebrows. He leaned over and gave her a quick kiss. "That makes me cool."

"No, that makes you dangerous."

"No," he countered, kissing her again. "I'd only be dangerous if I didn't know how to use it."

"But you drive a vehicle that takes up a lane and a half," she said. "Now _that_ makes you dangerous." He laughed, but his smile fell quickly.

"I have to get to a crime scene," he said quietly. "We'll have to finish this argument later." Before she had a chance to say anything more, he pressed his lips to hers, cradling the back of her head in his hand. "Can I stop by later?"

"Might want to bring a toothbrush if you plan on staying over again," she said with a smile, raising her eyebrows as she pinched her nose.

"I just used yours," he said with a wicked smile, stunning her enough to give her one last quick kiss and get off the bed.

"You what?" she finally asked, just as he started down the steps. He reappeared in the doorway.

"Kidding," he said with a sly smile. She rolled her eyes, flopping back onto the bed and flipping him off. His chuckle echoed off the hallway walls, and she found herself smiling.

-

"Ryan, Do you ever go home?" He glanced up from the computer, which was still searching through AFIS for a match on a print they picked up from a new crime scene that morning. Calleigh leaned against the doorway of the room, arms crossed over her chest.

"Sometimes," he said with a noncommittal shrug, turning back to the computer.

"Well, look, Horatio, Eric and I are going down to a Cuban bar Eric knows. Why don't you come with us?" His head snapped up in surprise. "That thing's going to be searching all night, probably," she added, nodding at the computer. He blinked quickly, the invitation a first.

"I, um…" he started, pausing to think. "I can't. I kind of already have plans." Calleigh smiled lightly.

"Bring her with you. Eric's still in the locker room. If you catch him, he can give you directions and y'all can meet us there," she offered. He took a breath, but she arched a brow at him. "I won't take no for an answer, darlin'," she said, sending him a charming smile before turning and leaving. He smiled, shaking his head a little before shrugging his lab coat from his shoulders and heading out to his vehicle. As he pulled out of the parking lot, he flipped open his phone.

"Bailey? Look, Calleigh wants us to meet her, Horatio, and Eric for drinks. … I don't know, she just knew. … It's not a big deal. We've all got the night off, so it's not like we'll be talking about work. … Well, you don't have to go if you don't want to." He smiled, turning the corner onto her street. "You sure? … Well, let me know when you want to leave and we will. … Okay, I'll see you in a couple seconds." He chuckled, flipping his phone shut as he pulled into the drive. She was opening the front door just as he reached for the door handle.

"You know, I really hate it when people hang up on me without saying goodbye," she huffed, leaving the door open tostand on the porch, hands on her hips. His eyebrow rose as he walked up the steps toward a very angry looking Bailey.

"I said I'd see you in a couple seconds," he said slowly. "It's the same as saying goodbye, isn't it?"

"No, it's the same as saying I'll see you in a couple seconds," she said, rolling her eyes. He sighed, shaking his head.

"Okay, goodbye then." She grinned.

"Bye," she returned brightly. "So are you gonna go home and change?" He glanced down at his clothes.

"I wasn't planning on it."

"Well, what kind of place is this? Jeans and a tee shirt or cute little number that shows too much skin?" His eyebrows shot up, a sly grin sliding across his lips.

"Yeah, okay," she said quickly, turning to head back inside. "Jeans and tee shirt it is."

"Wait a minute," he said, following her through the door and kicking it shut behind him. "I mean, jeans and a tee shirt is hot and all but…" he trailed off, shaking his head as she got to the top of the stairs, finally deciding to follow. He entered her bedroom just as she pulled a black tank top over her head, bending down to zip up her boots. The bed had been made neatly, her clothes picked up out of the floor, his towel still hanging perfectly folded on the rack next to the sink in the bathroom. The corners of his lips turned upwards just a little.

"How's this?" she asked, standing up and turning a circle for him. Her jeans were tighter than she normally wore them. Usually she'd buy the smallest pair of guy's jeans she could find long enough for her and pair them with a tight tank or tee shirt. These jeans looked like they were made specifically for her. The black tank stopped an inch above the waistband of her pants. A plain black belt circled her hips, and the outfit stopped with a pair of chunk heel boots. He let out a low whistle, and she smiled softly.

"Nice."

"So do youplan on standing there gawking while your friends wait for you at the bar?" she asked with a smirk.

"Colleagues," he corrected, watching her hips sway as she passed him, and followed her back down the hallway and down the stairs. She ducked into the den, opening a closet to take out a black soccer jacket with red stripes down the sleeves, draping it over her arm as she snatched up her purse. "Ready?" She nodded, smiling as he held the door open for her.

The ride to the bar was silent, except when Bailey would try to decipher the chicken scratches serving as directions. He pulled into the last open parking space and shut the car off, heaving a sigh before getting out. As they walked toward the building, he took her hand, stopping a few steps away from the front door.

"You okay?" she asked after a moment.

"This is weird," he said quietly. Her eyebrow rose. "I've been an outsider all this time and all of a sudden I'm part of the group getting invited out for drinks."

"That's a good thing," she said with a quiet laugh.

"Yeah, but it's still weird," he said, shifting his weight from foot to foot.

"Hey, you're the one that dragged me here."

"Dragged you?" he snickered.

"Showed up on my doorstep, forced me to change, threw me in your assault vehicle…" she trailed off with a smile as he laughed. "Look, I don't know what the circumstances were when you started, but there's probably a reason it's taken so long and it's probably a good sign this is happening." He only nodded. "God damn it, you're going in there if I have to club you over the head and drag you in by your leg."

"You wouldn't," he said with a smirk.

"You wanna try me?"

"Not really."

"Then get that cute geeky ass in the bar," she said sternly. He smiled, giving her hand a squeeze. She smiled over her shoulder at him as she opened the outer doors, Spanish style music playing inside. Once inside the inner doors, she stopped looking around for someone she might recognize. Ryan's arm slipped around her middle, his other arm coming over her shoulder to point toward a corner booth, where Horatio, Calleigh, and Eric were leaning in to speak to each other and hear over the music. Ryan's hand settled on the small of her back as he followed her toward the table. She sat next to Calleigh, sliding around the circle to make room for Ryan.

"Miss Devlin," Horatio said with a nod.

"How are the survivors doing?" Calleigh asked brightly. Bailey smiled.

"They're doing fine," she said. "Daisy's still a little depressed about losing all her babies, but she started eating again last week." Her eyes slid to where a group of people were dancing, glancing quickly at Ryan before turning back to the others. Eric stood, striding to the bar to ask for two more glasses for their pitcher of margarita. After a while, the five of them settled into an easy conversation.


End file.
